The Time that is Given to Us
by BlueCampbell
Summary: "His breath tickled the skin of her wrists, causing her to become very aware of their closeness. 'It is just… do not scare me like that again,' Kili said coldly after a moment. Sucking in her breath, Tali eyed him with a raised eyebrow. 'And you will be so lucky. I would die before I let harm come to you.'" Multi-chapter adventure fic with Kili/OC romantic pairing.


**A/N: ****ABOUT THIS FIC: This is a multi-chapter romance/adventure fic featuring Kili and an OC. This fic will be as accurate as I can manage when it comes to character personalities and Middle Earth history, but the storyline will be just a tad bit different. If you want to learn more about any of the introduced characters, battles, wars, towns, or dwarven history, consult The Silmarillion or LOTR wiki.**

**RATED T: For suggestive themes and violence. There will be some fairly steamy romantic content further down the line. If it ends up writing itself into M-rated territory, I'll warn you.**

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It was a quiet and icy night in the Blue Mountains, in the small dwarven village, Khallal. This dwarven village was a quaint little place with a humble people. Tall, green pines dusted with snow surrounded several dozen stone dwellings.

Expert dwarf craftsmen had long ago carved the large, elegant stone homes into a circular formation around the town. They formed a strong barrier against the harsh winter winds, along with the wargs and orcs that had begun cropping up more frequently in the mountains.

It was these mountain dangers that a young dwarf-woman, Tali, guarded against as she performed the nightly patrol. Thick, white snow squeaked and crunched under her brown leather boots as she wandered the stone roads that snaked through the town.

Her sharp, dark brown eyes continuously scanned the trees for any sign of trouble, and her ears strained as she listened for anything unusual. She was always searching for any sign of danger, whether it be weather or creature related.

As she traced her usual pathway through the small village, she absentmindedly sharpened the tip of an arrow. It was part of a routine - one she found herself performing alone every night. The night watch was not a job she minded, however, for two reasons. Firstly, the duty held a sort of sentimental value. It was a task she used to share with her father before his passing fifteen years ago. Secondly, she knew that while her people slept, she was all that stood between them and the dangers of the surrounding world. The orcs and wargs of the mountains were not afraid of pulling dwarves from their beds - and they had been especially vicious recently.

Just last week Bimur and Thonden had disappeared in the middle of the night. When Tali had been called to investigate their home the morning following their disappearance, she found ale and fish and plates strewn all about the kitchen - a sight no self-respecting dwarf would allow. The only trace left of the two men was a trail of blood leading deep into the forest.

It troubled her deeply, but she couldn't always save everyone. Although the village's inhabitants had retreated to the warmth of their homes for the night, they were never entirely safe.

About halfway through her second lap around the village, Tali's sharp ears heard a twig snap. The leaves of a bush near the woman rustled, and as if on instinct, she quickly nocked the arrow she had been sharpening in her bow and drew.

Her heart pounded against her ribcage and she held her breath in anticipation as she expertly aimed at the source of the sound.

_Please_, she thought. _Not more orcs._

The leaves of the bush rustled again, and she let out a sigh as a large black dog came trotting out. Its fur was dusted with flecks of snow, and its tongue hung happily from its mouth as it sat itself down at her feet.

The young woman chuckled to herself, and tucked a lock of long red hair behind her ear. With a smile, she plopped herself down on the ground and scratched the dog behind the ears. The mutt gleefully nuzzled closer, inviting her to continue scratching. Absentmindedly, she obliged, and contemplated the time, noticing the moon was still quite high in the sky.

Tali jumped as she felt the dog beside her suddenly stand at full attention. It emitted a low growl and the hair on its back stood straight up.

"What is it?" she asked the mutt, reaching out to stroke its fur soothingly. The dog simply growled again - its eyes focused intently on something in the distance.

She followed its gaze to see a rider on a pony several hundred yards away, approaching the village at a breakneck pace. As the speeding animal neared, she could easily make out who the rider was.

_Well, well, well_, she thought, rising to her feet and stretching her limbs as the dog beside her disappeared back into the trees. _It's about time you showed up, Nar._

Tali smiled at the sight of her approaching friend. When her father passed, the old man – who was once a close ally of her grandfather - took on the role of a father-figure. As Tali grew old enough to lead and protect her people, Nar became her loyal messenger.

She had been impatiently waiting for news from him for several days. As he brought his brown, scruffy pony to a halt in the deep snow, she felt a surge of adrenaline run through her veins.

"I have been growing impatient, Nar," she said in an official tone as she approached the plump, old man with large, confident steps. Her eyes followed him as he slid gracefully off his pony to face her. "I did not imagine your mission would take more than a night – yet here we are four days later."

A frown stretched over Nar's deeply wrinkled face, which was bright red from the bitter cold ride.

"I apologize for the delay, Lady Tali," he said. "I ran into a bit of trouble."

Tali paused a few feet from him and crossed her arms over her chest.

"You? I never would have expected you to be involved in any sort of trouble," she said mockingly. A devilish grin formed on her chapped lips.

After pausing for a moment in silence, the pair burst out in loud laughter together. Nar closed the gap between them and swept Tali's small frame up in a tight embrace. She giggled as his long, grey beard tickled her smooth face.

"Oh, it's good to see you again, young one," he laughed. "And you know me far too well. It was quite some trouble, indeed."

Brows furrowing, Tali took a step back from the elder to survey him for any signs of injury. He didn't appear to be hurt, but the news of trouble still made her nervous.

"I am doing well, m'lady," Nar said, placing a firm hand on her shoulder as he sensed her concern. "But I have some unfortunate news."

Tali's shoulders stiffened and her hands curled into fists. Nar leaned in closely and his voice dropped to a low rumble.

"I had no trouble finding Thorin Oakenshield's village, but it seems he left days ago to meet with leaders of the other dwarf tribes," the old man said. "You were not to be notified. I fear you are still considered too young by him to represent our people in any official capacity."

Tali gritted her teeth as her fists began to shake.

"Did you find any men who seek to join him on his journey?" she asked, growing increasingly more agitated. "Are we even sure he seeks to reclaim his place at the Lonely Mountain?" Nar shook his head.

"The last of his company left right before I arrived, m'dear," he said with a sigh. "I was unable to confirm the nature of their quest or negotiate your addition."

Tali turned away from Nar, squeezing her eyes tightly shut as tears hovered at the corners. Crying was not something she considered acceptable in front of her people. She could feel Nar's sad eyes on her as she tried to control her emotions. After some time, she spoke again.

"How long?" she commanded, finally turning back towards Nar. Tears no longer threatened to spill from her dark brown eyes, and she forced an expression that was cold and collected. "How long ago did they leave?" The man smiled knowingly.

"The last ones left merely a few hours before I arrived," Nar said.

After contemplating this for a moment, she turned quickly on her heels and began marching towards the stables. Nar shuffled through the thick snow behind her, struggling to pull his pony along.

"They are little more than a day ahead of me, if I were I to leave now," Tali mumbled while walking. She twirled a lock of her wavy hair around her finger, seemingly deep in thought.

"You cannot m'lady," Nar said, raising a finger to scold her, "Your mother would not have it. And even though you are our leader, Thorin made a point to not include you due to your age so at least wait until-"

Tali looked back at him with a deadly glare, which caused the elder to fall silent. With a growl, she quickened her pace.

"I need to leave now," she said matter-of-factly when the pair arrived at the shabby, wooden stables. "I have no time to lose if I want to catch them."

Nar simply nodded as he hitched his pony to a post. His wrinkled hands trembled from the cold as he tied a clumsy knot.

"I figured you would want to do something like this," he said as he watched her search for a saddle. "You're just as stubborn as your father was."

Tali looked at him with a crooked smile, pleased to be compared to her father.

"I did a bit of digging for you and found out which passage the dwarves who are supposedly joining Thorin took," Nar said. "I also gathered their names and descriptions. There are several towns and villages along the way, and I'm sure you will be able to get information on their whereabouts from locals, should you need it."

She saddled her black pony, Shaade, and attached her pack, warhammer, bow, and quiver to his side. Nar stood quietly beside her, watching as snow began to fall on the mountain village.

"Thank you - that will be very helpful," she finally said to him.

Tali began leading Shaade out of the stable and looked at Nar expectantly. The old dwarf approached her and handed her a slip of parchment. She studied it, and could make out a crudely drawn map of a passage through the mountains. The names, ages, and brief descriptions of thirteen dwarves were also scribbled across the side. Towards the bottom of the page, a queer sign was etched, reading _Burglar wants a good job, plenty of Excitement and reasonable Reward. _This, she figured, would be the sign to look for.

Tali smiled appreciatively and hugged her friend once again.

"I will need you to inform my mother of my departure in the morning," she said, pulling away from the embrace. "I have no time for farewells."

The old man ignored her words and wrung his hands nervously.

"Do you really think you can help our people, m'lady?" he asked as he shuffled his feet. Tali folded the paper and stuffed it into the pocket of her brown trousers. "What if they do not accept you or allow us to share in their spoils?"

"If Durin's Folk truly aim to reclaim Erebor, as I suspect they do," she replied confidently, turning to her pony again, "It will be the best chance our people have had in a long time. Their success would ensure a home and better life for their kin. The Broadbeams should share in this. I will not accept 'no' for an answer."

Nar nodded with understanding.

"We have all lost our homes, families, and riches at one time or another," he said.

Nar sighed as he watched Tali mount Shaade. With a soft kick from the heel of her boot, the animal slowly began walking onto the stone path that snaked through the town. A worried expression shot across Nar's face, and before she made it very far he grabbed the reins, stopping her departure.

"Now, Tali, I love you like a father would," he said, looking at her with teary, wrinkled eyes. She met his intense gaze, her lips curling into a frown. "I have ever since I first heard your cries when your father and I pulled you from your mother's womb. In just 70 years, you have grown into a capable leader and strong, intelligent dwarf. I trust you - but please, be very careful."

The girl looked away from his pleading expression to the path that lay ahead. Nestled high in the Blue Mountains, their village overlooked dozens of snow-capped mountains jutting up from the landscape and thick, green forests in the valleys. She had learned many painful lessons as a young girl about the dangers in the area, and she had heard many times that the road to Erebor was even more treacherous.

Deepening her frown, Tali deftly removed the reins from Nar's hands.

_I fully understand I may not return_, she thought, but could not find the heart to say.

"Look after my mother," she commanded, her voice catching in her throat.

With a strong, sharp kick, Shaade began galloping away from the village, hooves clicking on the stone path. Every step the animal took kicked up a cloud of freshly fallen snow, which she was sure Nar watched as she rode away.

"I pray this is not our final goodbye," she whispered to herself, tears flowing freely down her cheeks. She pulled her forest green cloak tightly around her small frame, and did not look back as the village disappeared behind her.

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**Thank you for reading the first chapter! We will get to learn more about Tali and the company members next chapter. **

**You can expect weekly updates. I already have this story written - it's just a matter of editing and editing and editing. And by the way, I deeply appreciate every review, and would love it if you left them! Criticisms, advice, reactions, etc… I'll love you forever. **

**P.S. Anyone else dying for the release of The Desolation of Smaug?**


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